This is the closest I'm likely to get to an official website - the place to announce & discuss all of my current & upcoming projects (comix, magazine articles & columns, fiction & metafiction, & music), & to share my thoughts on the arts, media, music, film, pop culture & politics. I'll publish for the first time online older writings from hard copy magazines & newspapers. I'll also post artwork, videos, or just blog away on whatever occupies my brain.

Monday, November 23, 2015

1979 was a busy year for the
various personalities that had fallen under the rubric of the
Aggregate. Ben Renova came out of retirement as Wurm to stop Carnifex
from looting the Renova Savings & Loan main branch. He was not
able to ward off Carnifex alone, especially after Urias came and
teleported the money and holdings away. Urias did not need the money;
he needed to humiliate a hero and hurl the gauntlet for the next big
move against the Aggregate. The Damnation Brigade were the ones to
make that bid, with Damnation
members new and old aligned against the Aggregate. Wurm rejoined the
Aggregate. He thought it was well overdue for Carnifex and Urias to
be taken down. For good.

Milo Majestyk's mob (now
calling themselves 'The Machine' after Skull's nascent foray into
organized crime) were buying more city officials and spreading
corruption throughout Hallmark. Under the aegis of Arch-Priest Urias,
the new Damnation Brigade met up with Majestyk and worked out a plan
for the Brigade to take down the mutual adversaries of the two
groups. The new Brigade was led by Urias, tired of being behind the
scenes and eager to crush the spiritis of his foes and glory in the
heady draught of victory. Beside him was his on and off partner
Carnifex; Urias' familiar, the undead Pallor; Solomon Vossius the
Tormenter; TSD subject Alphonse Marins, also known as the incredibly
strong Mexican wrestler El Perro de Guerra (the Dog of War); Cal
Thorne aka Exterminans the Death Walker, in one of his premiere
missions; and Scottish telepath/ telekinetic Roland Mallory, a TSD
Recombinant experimented on by Donal Rykards.

Cary believed the time had
to rebuild the Aggregate HQ beneath Bradcroft Manor. This space was
to be the first HQ Compound. The Compounds were originally suggested
by Thomas Ledge as a way to capture the team's foes and keep them
imprisoned as needed. The Compounds would also be places for
Aggregate members to live so that they and their families could feel
safe. All of this meant that a self-governing system had to be put
into effect.

The Compounds would function
as co-ops/ communes. Ledge didn't like the socialist overtones yet
most of his suggestions were fed into the layout though he was rather
ungrateful. Euphrates Straw laid out the entire map and schema for
the Compounds. Construction was hired clandestinely; it was carried
out by Serafinians, who were paid well by Bradcroft and Renova. This
also chafed Ledge, but by 1980, Ledge had well worn out his welcome
with Bradcroft & co, so they chafed each other daily.

Cary sought many new members
for the group, the last time he would do so. Caulder Gaunt agreed to
join the Aggregate, as did Brother Zodiac at long last. Cary found a
pocket of ex-cons who'd been injected with TSD and were in REACT
custody: Empress Moth, Necrotica, Karibou, and Arc-Welder (More
specific biographical details on these four to follow in upcoming
segments). These were located for the group by the White Archer, who
felt it a wise idea to allow Bradcroft and company to train the “talent”
and the FSO's job was to exploit that talent for its own group
afterward.

II. The Way They Were: The
Last Days of The Original Freedom Squad

And so we return at long
last to the so-called Freedom Squad, busy on foreign missions for
months and retraining after the near-fatal Deomond/ Solus affair. In
reconstructing their bodies, REACT subtly manipulated their minds to
pledge obedience to REACT. Only the mind of John Gauvin, aka Wrath,
rejected the mental invasiveness. This was because Gauvin had been a
TSD trial volunteer; his only gift received by the treatment was
complete immunity from telepathic invasiveness (including surgical
and genetic engineering techniques). His brain was like a steel forge
and could not be penetrated. Phileas Caleb realized this and kept very close
tabs on Wrath.

Freedom Squad Ops (or FSO),
as it was most commonly referred to in those days, was the victim of
another set-up deal between Mob enterprise and Skull tech. The result
was known affectionately as the “OBIT Gang” and was unfortunately
led by the long-missing Princesa Verde of the Aggregate, Cedric
Lykos' former lover. Under her auspices were: Garnet and Cynosure,
both rejected by Bradcroft and co.; the “Solar Princess” and
hippie lightbender Sunchild; the Vietnamese shape-shifting Tran;
Anaximander Zayan's daughter Atheru, aka Soulfish; and the armored
Terrapin, who had gotten to be good pals with Convy Lee Sutch
(Cynosure).

The Freedom Squad lineup
itself had morphed with the fallout of the Deomond/ Solus incident
and rejuvenation of the team. With Ursulin AWOL in space and Solus
and the second Duellist dead, the group amounted to Liberty Lord,
Troubleshooter, White Archer, Dr E, Flare, a recent acquisition Dart (the first female member), and brand-new recruit, a powerful
Bible-thumper calling himself Vigil.

So the rejuvenated Freedom
Squad took on the OBIT Gang once in early 1980. The very outre group
took FSO by surprise and scrambled their usual group dynamic. Still
Freedom Squad's raw power looked to be winning out when Sunchild
turned Dr E's power upon himself; fortunately there were no
casualties. Soulfish had the dubious honor of snapping Dart's neck
but succumbed to Dart's weaponry; she lived but in a comatose state.
Garnet and Cynosure almost took out the White Archer. But it was
Vigil, who stepped in with his array of Recombinant abilities (to be
discussed in future accounts) and brutally dispersed OBIT. The group
fled, much to Skull's chagrin.

III. The Trinity

Alec continued to feel tense
around Kicia now that Brother Zodiac was at last a member of the
Aggregate. Alec, his mind at peace regarding the Marchessa, felt
that Kicia was his true love, hence he was somewhat awkward with her,
despite what they had shared in the past. Finally Kicia made a move,
and Cowan, having no respect for Brother Zodiac or for Kicia's love
for BZ, succumbed once more to Ms. Blessing's considerable charms.
Trevor was hardly faithful to Kicia anyway, having bedded Sunchild
before her enlistment in the OBIT Gang when she was merely a fixture
of the Flicker Street scene, as well as Empress Moth, one of the
newbies to the Aggregate. Even Ghost Cat, who Caulder Gaunt had been
professing love to for years, seemed drawn into Novembre's spell.
Gaunt confronted Mei-Chan about the situation, and she graciously put
aside her infatuation with Zodiac to allow Gaunt to “woo her
properly” (his words).

Alec took a trip to New
Orleans with Lykos to find info on the “Grey Messiah”, but the
paper trail only reached back to 1955. Meanwhile, Cotton confronted
Zodiac about his lifestyle and warned the bohemian lothario that his
days in the Aggregate may be numbered, especially if he was quite
literally sleeping with the enemy. On a drunken night in
February 1980, Alec and Lykos confronted BZ about all of this, and
suggested Zodiac go join the OBIT Gang where he might be more
comfortable, and where no one in the Aggregate would have any
compunctions against wiping the floor with him, even though the
Brother's power levels lied somewhere Dr E's and that of the Absurd
Tentacle.

Zodiac rebuffed Alec and
Cedric, who had become close friends of late, and taunted Alec with
braggadocio regarding Kicia. Trevor obviously had not realized that
Kicia and Cowan had recently been intimate. Novembre apparently did
not yet know that Kicia had just discovered that she was pregnant and
wasn't sure of the paternity. Alec did know that Kicia was expecting
and implored her to get a blood test. Lykos, in the meantime, had
developed a rather involved theory regarding Brother Zodiac. He went
to Straw and Cary with his fears. He had come to believe that
Vaikuntha had avatars in Hallmark and that “Trevor Novembre” was
one of them. Unfortunately, only the sword and amulet of the Black
Cabal could detect a Presence in one of its avatar forms, and, even
then, a Presence could make itself undetectable by most forms of
magick.

It would explain much, Cary
and Euphrates agreed. The three men (Bradcroft, Straw, Lykos) opted to go
about their business with Zodiac, hoping he didn't suspect that they
suspected him. They didn't tell Alec right away for fear of a major
set-to with Zodiac. Lykos pointed out that with Caulder Gaunt's past, Gaunt's true identity also came into question.

One night in March 1980 a
restless Zodiac left his room and Kicia sleeping. He had just learned
that he may be a father and that Alec Duarte was his true rival for
Kicia and the baby. Zodiac encountered Caulder Gaunt in the
Bradcroft Manor courtyard. Zodiac drew upon a fearsome wellspring of
mystical energy and absorbed the protesting Gaunt into himself down
to the molecular level. He then mused to himself, “Only one more
and we shall be complete..” Brother Zodiac then reached out with
his far-ranging mind and located the “one more”. He was scarcely
surprised at the identity of the other piece of the unholy trinity.
As Caulder Gaunt had emerged 25 years earlier a total amnesiac, and
Zodiac had always been guarded about his past save for his claims to
be Trevor Novembre of 1960s New Orleans, the third of this trinity
emerged in 1954 with a whole set of false memories, memories about to
be dispelled once and for all, along with the entire being that
housed those memories – all subsumed by Brother Zodiac.

And so we return to Grey
Parminter's desperate summoning of Vaikuntha in 1954, which at long
last bore cosmic fruit. Vaikuntha had returned to this plane after a
millenium but could only do this by incarnating himself into avatars
– an ability he used for millenia in the past to walk among men.
Vaikuntha would erase his memories or program himself with elaborate
false memories in an elaborate spell that even altered the memories
of those around him, to “recall” the avatar's past human
interactions. Such was the power and intricacy of an avatar working
that Cary and Ashton Bradcroft studied it to master it just in case....
for the avatar, as we have seen, is untraceable by any magick perception on Earth. It is the ultimate way for a mage or Presence to
walk among the populace of Earth, human or Exodesian alike, and work
for good or ill undetected. Its aim could gleaned from its conscious mind if made aware, but a subconscious drive could be guiding it so that when the
cosmics were right, the seed of the being who broke apart into
avatars would “awaken”.. and seek out its other selves, encased
in flesh ignorant of its making.

Brother Zodiac kidnapped
Kicia's mother Acacia and taunted Cary, Straw, Duarte, and Lykos.
Ghost Cat was despondent that Gaunt had apparently abandoned her
after such a lengthy and ardent pursuit. Kicia went to Alec and stated that she chose him over BZ. They made love, with Alec knowing any moment
Acacia could be a dead woman. They were interrupted by Cotton Suede,
Thomas Ledge, and Konchuman, who rendezvoused with Zodiac and tried
to divine just what it was that they could do so that Zodiac would
free Kicia's mother. Zodiac insisted on seeing only Duarte, Straw,
Bradcroft, and Lykos.

But the working had yet to
conclude. Even as Zodiac was physically changing, he announced that
they shall all be one family, and gestured, drawing Kicia into the
maelstrom emanating from the being was once was a trinity and now is
one. Alec held onto her hand until her body wilted and dissolved.
Alec cried out as the woman he loved and her unborn child (which was
Zodiac's, not Alec's) were consumed by the reborn Presence. And so
Vaikuntha awoke, a dead ringer for the being that Gaunt and Zodiac
had been dreaming of. Euphrates Straw was at a loss; he had never
before encountered a Presence( few had). Vaikuntha let loose a burst
of energy from his third eye, frying Straw where he stood, even as
Vaikuntha himself was blasted from behind from the now cognizant
Shadow Baron, flanked by Lykos. Cary was too late, however, and
Euphrates Straw's remains crumpled to the ground. Vaikuntha announced
his retreat and that this time around, Earth would be his to pleasure
himself with however he saw fit. He disappeared, and a heartbroken
Alec and his allies searched for find something to house Straw's
remains.

IV. Vaikuntha Rising

The Aggregate regrouped. A
ceremony was held in which the entire current team was there –
Bradcroft, Cowan, Lykos, Ledge, Cotton, Konchuman, Wurm, Ghost Cat,
Corona, Myrmidon, Empress Moth, Necrotica, Karibou, and Arc-Welder -
to pay respects to Straw and acknowledge the other two fallen
members, though this latter idea of Bradcroft's, in the interest of
ceremony and magnanimity, enraged several members. They grumbled that
Gaunt and Zodiac did little during their time with the team save plot
and ploy against them. As Thomas Ledge put it: “Ya don't honor a
man like Straw beside two pieces of shit who were planning our
destruction the whole freakin' time – whether they knew it or not.”
Cotton very vocally agreed, as did Alec (a rare instance where he and
Thomas were in sync) and so a separate acknowledgment for the two
avatars was held a week after Straw's elaborate funeral.

Straw's teammates and his
retinue from outside the team, solemnly honored this most amazing of
men. Straw's heirs attended: his lover Octavia Flay and her child by
Euphrates, Darius Flay (b. 1975); his estranged widow Artemis Clancey
(b. 1948) and her child by Euphrates, Zachariah “Zack” Straw (b.
1970); as well as the surviving members of the interconnected
Clancey, Reale, Torrance, and Flay families.

This left the Aggregate with
only one original member in its 16 year existence - the Shadow Baron,
and he shouldered the blame for all that had occurred. He knew that
the group, especially with so many young and lesser experienced
members, needed as much help as they could get. Knowing they will
refuse to help him, Cary dismissed approaching the Freedom Squad
offhand, and concentrated on two extremely powerful potential allies:
Orphee deLander, the Absurd Tentacle, and his lover Silent Indigo,
Cary's niece. Bradcroft also tried to contact his own brother to no
avail. Finally, he approached Javier's sect, who agreed to help.

Orphee immediately attempted
to take control of the situation though Cary and Javier were far more
well-versed in sorcery. After months planning by this uneasy alliance
without any incident, Vaikuntha struck the Aggregate's nascent first
Compound. Without warning, the mad god decided to merely destroy his
primary foes all at once, making a statement to the Freedom Squad or
any other gifted individuals looking to take him down. His main target, however, was Cary Bradcroft's knowledge of the Black Cabal talisman.

Gathered was the same
line-up present at Straw's memorial – perhaps the most formidable
Aggregate yet assembled. Also present were the Absurd Tentacle,
Silent Indigo, and Javier. Vaikuntha announced,
“Millenia I have slept, and dreamt beyond the pale... for the day I
wake and unleash the destroyer force on all mankind.” In one mighty
wave Vaikuntha annhilated Silent Indigo, Karibou, and the Empress
Moth, critically injuring Corona and Wurm in the process. Ghost Cat,
Cary's replacement as field commander for Euphrates, attempted to use
advanced martial arts on Vaikuntha while Javier and Bradcroft hurled arcane forces at him, and Thomas and Lykos attempted to knock him down
with brute force. Alec and Stephen Bartholemew simply shot at him.
All proved ineffectual until Orphee managed to physically wrestle the
six-armed god to the ground, using all of his psychokinetic power to
augment his strength. Brimming with rage over Indigo's death, he
brought to bear all he had against the daemonic Presence.

But then Vaikuntha unleashed his eldritch energies and the Absurd Tentacle slowly dissipated into
a small puttlylike blob before evaporating altogether. “Enough!!”
screamed a muffled voice. From out of the dust strode a tall man, dressed
head to toe in black and grey and wearing a mask concealing his
entire face, even his eyes. A bejeweled amulet gleamed about his neck,
and he wielded an ornate blade. Was this the one-man embodiment of the
force that laid Vaikuntha low 1000 years ago?

The oblique gentlemen
swiftly moved in on Vaikuntha, fearless. He proclaimed: “Tis time
once more the Balance is struck, and the Black Cabal shall make it
so. I am he you have dreaded in the dreams of a millenium sleeping in
the outer planes. And now you shall sleep again. I banish the Presence
who would rule all Creation; I drive it back, back – into the
fetid pit from which it crawled - a slug who dared believe it was
God”.

Vaikuntha raised several of
his arms as if to cast a spell, whispering only “Dharma..”, but
the Black Cabal struck him in the heart with his blade as his amulet
glistened. An all-consuming light envelopes the destined foes, and then was
abruptly snuffed out. It would be safe to say that the survivors of
this skirmish with Vaikuntha all stood in a state of complete shock.

They quickly reconnoitered to
garner medical attention for those who needed it and to mourn their
lost comrades. The year 1980 closed on a somber note for the
Aggregate, and with many more questions raised than answered by the
year's events.Welcome to Flicker Street!Henry CovertNovember 23, 2015Thanx to all of my Facebook friends, especially those who are reading.No thanx to Baal, no thanx to Rowan, no thanx to Wolfie.Flicker Street, all images, characters, and story elements are Copyright (c) 2015 George Henry Smathers Jr.

Tuesday, November 17, 2015

Further Thoughts on FLICKER STREET (Slight Return)I warned you I'd be back. So, here I sit, pondering the direction and shape Flicker Street is taking. Treatment #17 - "Presence" - is more than halfway done, even through fighting a nasty writer's block of sorts this past week. Extensive notes for #s 18 and 19 (Titles TBA) are starting to assume a manageable shape. Truthfully, these chapters have been the most crucial to surmount - being that they segue into a sharp tonal shift from past treatments. "Presence" is a joy to write, but also a bit of a bear. I have to keep all the arcs and tangents carefully juggled lest one fall, and rend asunder the gossamer loom on which I weave the world of Flicker Street.I'm not sure if Flicker Street is quite ready for a debut proper. A doctor of mine asked me today, "What's this book you're writing all the time?" I answered that it was like a bible, or sourcebook, or whatever they call it nowadays, for a projected piece of serial fiction - comix, prose, or television. It lays out the characters and the world, the backstory, etc. - at least that's how I explained it to my doctor. Makes sense to me, though it may not have to her."Presence" will be the crucial chapter of the last few, wrapping up with some (hopefully) mind-bending surprises that will make clear the arcs from # 14 onward. Even I've been shocked at my characters' revelations - I love it when that happens. It just seems to be the way things shake out for me when I'm on a roll. Well, back to work, as Uncle Bill my moon brother admonishes me to do when I'm lagging behind on this project. As usual, many thanx are due:To Sean Lee Levin, Jan Takehara, Bill White, "The Marksman", Michael T Jones, Kelley Widmeyer, Ryli Morgan, Lori Jones, S.a. Mosley, Shawn Michael Vogt, Morgan Overcash, Leslie K Maitri, and all those helping me keep moving, albeit sluggishly at times. I love you all!!For ongoing eternal inspiration: Philip Jose Farmer, William S Burroughs, JG Ballard, Steve Gerber, Grant Morrison, Douglas Marland, James A Michener, L Frank Baum, V. Vale, Osamu Tezuka, Don McGregor, Roy Thomas, Peter Milligan, Jack Kirby, Win Scott Eckert, and many more....

PS Wait'll you meet one of the next new characters I have in store for you: Reverend Tim Bollin of the WOGG Ministries (Word Of God's Glory, of course). If you grew up in the Bible Belt as I did, he'll be a very familiar polygot of various unsavory "TV criminals"...Henry CovertNovember 17, 2015Flicker Street, all images, characters, and story elements are Copyright (c) 2015 George Henry Smathers Jr.

Thursday, November 5, 2015

FLICKER STREET: A Brief Respite I wanted to share a few thoughts and wax introspective on Flicker Street, my ongoing series of treatments for a potential comix series. To those few souls reading this, many thanks! I deeply appreciate your comments, feedback, views, and shares. At times it seems I'm building this world in a proverbial vacuum; perhaps I am. This has been labor of love: 30 + years of love, and now, days and nights of labor. The labor comes in condensing a mammoth, living breathing organism into manageable chunks for the reader to digest. This has been difficult. Over the years there have been long, deep holes left in the overarching narrative, as I plowed ahead with what felt right - an ongoing catharsis that was being composed solely for me, not any prospective readers. I am attempting to plug those holes and streamline the narrative leading to the story I most want to tell ultimately. I've always felt that there was (dreaded word here) commercial potential for Flicker Street; that is, I've long believed that its target audience(s) would enjoy FS if they were merely exposed to it. But navigating through the dense underbrush of events that serve as the substratum for the FS saga 'proper' could be problematic to any new readers. The main story, beginning with '1987', was going to be convoluted enough; to grok the particulars and ground rules, so to speak, inherent in the demi-epic backstory, may be too much to ask of an audience.These are matters I still grapple with as I plunge ever onward, recounting in these treatments all (or most) of the pertinent info needed to arm the reader with the sound foundation needed to enrich and hopefully enhance their experience of FS proper. Consider these treatments prequels to a story yet to unfold; snapshots of my attempt to world build. Now that I'm closer to the beginning than the end of the FS "prequels", I would like to share with any potential readers that with '1987' onward, there will be strong tonal shift in narrative. Certain concerns from the treatments may not be as useful in the saga proper. Superheros, mystery men, and pulp style action gives way to a more complex, character-based occult soap opera of sorts. This is not to say there won't be plenty of action, sex, violence, and other "exploitable" elements, but these facets will be woven in and out of the larger loom of intrigue, romance, paranoia, and sci-fi horror ahead. As further thoughts on the nature of my work strike me, I may report back here. If I don't (or if I do), I look forward to sharing Treatments #s 17 and 18, currently being constructed. I am still unsure of the final number of chapters, but it will be between 20 and 25 in all likelihood.Thanx again for reading,Henry CovertNovember 5, 2015Copyright (c) 2015 George Henry Smathers Jr.

Friday, October 30, 2015

The peculiar case of the man
called Caulder Gaunt was almost one case of spontaneous generation –
he was seemingly born fullblown: an adult without parents or a past.
But some force wished Gaunt to find his way; to retrace the steps of
memory that had been wiped clean. Caulder awoke in Hallmark, in
January 1955, wearing a costly suit and bearing a wallet with ID
(which gave his birthdate as January 1, 1925) and thousands of
dollars in cash. Instinctively, he sought out a bank and soon had
some sense of security. One night, he decided to drown his sorrow and
insecurity at the Lucifer Club.

There, he took a an
immediate shine to the Indian belly dancer Acacia Blessing. He was
mesmerized by her. When they were introduced by the club owner
Javier, there was an immediate bond. But there another man enamored
of Acacia, the businessman Ethan Byron. Ethan had a troubled
marriage but his wife was about to have their first child. Ethan (b.
1920) had only been married for two years to Virginia de Ruyter (b.
1925) and the couple had suffered a miscarriage. They had high hopes
for their next attempt at childbearing.

Acacia was married to Junius
G. Hand at this time, though to date no one had told Junius that his
son by Erszebet Singer survived and was adopted. Junius was overjoyed over Acacia's pregnancy, and did what he could to ward off the
wolves at the club. Soon, however, she was showing and stopped
dancing until after the child's birth. So all Ethan and Caulder could
do was drink and fantasize over the lovely Acacia.

Virginia de Ruyter was the
paternal granddaughter of the much-discussed Ananias de Ruyter, one
of the founding fathers of Hallmark. Virginia's father, Victor de
Ruyter, was something of a criminal, involved in all manner of vice
and heavily entwined with the local mob. This made his daughter into
something of a crusader for social causes, which was very compatible
with husband Ethan's aspirations to one day become District Attorney
and truly clean up Hallmark. But Ethan, unlike his bride's family,
was not an heir to millions and his dreams seemed all but
unattainable. That is, until he made the acquaintance of the
mysterious Caulder Gaunt.

Caulder needed a job; Ethan
needed a friend. And so, as fate would have it, Ethan brought Gaunt
in at an entry level position at OrDeR Enterprises. Ethan had an
uncanny knack for spotting sound investments and was soon rising at
OrDeR. Ethan's son by Virginia, Clayton Ethan “Clay” Byron was
born in early 1956, and his presence helped cool some of the friction
between his parents. But in 1958, Junius and Acacia divorced but
Acacia stayed at the club at Javier's urging. Ethan and Virginia had
been arguing over money; Ethan soon had a drunken affair with Acacia.
Caulder advised him to hide this from his wife, which he did, and
definitely from the public as he had won the post of Hallmark
District Attorney. Ethan and his wife were soon high on Tony Duarte's
hit list.

II. The Chinese Connection

In 1963 Shun Ti the
undisputed female master of Feng Qi (and originally the Omegan called
Ish) was slain by Kith M'Nali, the “Black Tamerlane”. Kith was
found out and he and the Black Skull Society, tolerated in Feng Qi
for many years, were exiled permanently. Kith had been anticipating
this for decades, and so fled to a new headquarters in Japan that he
had set up in case of such an occurrence. He also had a secondary HQ
in America that he had begun putting together as early as the 1850s.
He had created an underground railroad for slaves in America. After
they were free, many slaves indebted to him did his bidding, as did
their descendants. Ironically, working for Kith M'Nali was akin to
slavery itself. The man born Abasse Mathabane learned little from the
struggles of his people; personal power was ultimately his sole
objective.

Feng Qi was intended by Shun
Ti to be ultimately inherited by Kar-Fai Liao, whose father Tsun-Lun
was Shuni-Ti's son and her greatest disciple. Kong had slain Tsun-Lun
as he had Tsun-Lun's father The Claimer and took his title for
himself. With Kong now apparently deceased Kith was running out of
allies and Shun Ti was running low on heirs. Ko Sui-Li (b. 1920),
mother of Kar-Fai, took the reigns of Feng-Qi, but was constantly
plotted against by her sons Li-Ang Liao and Zhey Liao. Zhey had
always been loyal to Kong, and advised Li-Ang to build on the power
vacuum left by Kong and Kith. Li-Ang envisioned himself an overlord
in the manner of Kong, with the world's vice in his lethal grasp.

Sui-Li reorganized Feng Qi,
and made her son its overlord. Under Kar-Fai's aegis, Archimedes Ko,
son of Bram Vallard, was largely in charge of overseeing the temples
and Solacium. Ko was young, but had been a monk almost since
his birth (in 1943) and was a master of martial arts and Zen
principals. His twin sister Mei-Chan Ko, the “Ghost Cat”, had
also trained since birth. Kar-Fai needed the fresh blood, according
to Sui-Li, as Kar-Fai spent much of his time ruminating on thoughts
of vengeance against Kith for slaying his grandmother Shun Ti. Sui-Li refused to
let her son turn Feng-Qi into an engine of destruction; Kith had
tried and failed many times to do just that.

In 1964, Ethan and Virginia
Byron were slain by Marco Allegretti. Under the advice of Bram
Vallard (who that year co-founded the Aggregate), Archimedes offered
to take in the eight year old Clay Byron. Kar-Fai felt he could mold
Clay (pun unintended) into the instrument of vengeance he'd been yearning for. Not
surprisingly, the Byrons left their fortune to Clay, but made Caulder
Gaunt the trustee of the estate. Gaunt had power of attorney for the
Byrons. Ethan had come to see Gaunt as a brother, and trusted him
completely. Gaunt naturally agreed, but he asked one thing of Ko:
that he be allowed to train alongside Clay at the monastery. Kar-Fai
trusted his sincerity and felt bringing in those of different races, as
Shun Ti had done, honored the original Pan-Asian creeds that Kith
corrupted.

Most surprising to all was
one other child who wished to train at Feng Qi: his name was Clive
and his mother Jerusha Dharma brought him to the monastery she had
heard so much about over the years. She was with Myrus T Fellbane,
now her fiance (much to Clive's chagrin). They brought with them
something Clive's father had entrusted Jerusha with – a sword and
amulet that were said to be 1000 years old and once drove the vile Presence Vaikuntha from this plane of existence. Jerusha felt that Feng Qi would be the
safest place on Earth to house the items, just as she felt that
Exodesia would be the most unsafe place imaginable. These items were
forged by a Hindu cult called the Black Cabal; legend had it that if
one man was ever worthy of bearing sword and amulet, he would inherit
the powers of the entire Black Cabal. Jerusha wished this for her
son. Her motives were not exactly pure however; she harbored a deep
resentment of Clive Dharma's father, Cary Bradcroft, for seemingly
abandoning her in his quest for power in Exodesia. She felt Clive
could be molded, as Kar-Fai was molding Clay Byron, into an
instrument of vengeance.

Fellbane, however, had other
plans. He desired the power of the Black Cabal for himself, and had
schemed for nine years to be in the position to claim it. Fellbane
asked Kar-Fai Liao if he could train Fellbane in some of his mystic
arts. Kar-Fai was offended that such an interloper would see the
training at Feng Qi as something so casual and superficial. Fellbane
caused a mild uproar with his commentary following Kar-Fai's refusal
to train him. Kar-Fai lost control and with one blow killed Fellbane.

Jerusha was shocked and
asked to speak to Sui-Li Ko alone. Sui-Li felt Kar-Fai's action was
rash and out of control, but she admonished Jerusha that Fellbane
brought a potential evil with him to Feng Qi, and that was not to be
tolerated. Jerusha confided that Fellbane had cast a spell nine years
prior so that she and her son could not be found by Cary Bradcroft.
Sui-Li was surprised, as the Shadow Baron had become well-known in
mystic circles for his power and knowledge, though he'd not yet
wrought the good he went on to accomplish leading the Aggregate.

Jerusha understood, but
asked that Kar-Fai weave a new spell protecting her and Clive from
Bradcroft. Kar-Fai did so, and added the caveat that only one who
wielded the sword and amulet of the Black Cabal could banish the
spell. All was made well for the time being. Jerusha was invited to
stay at Feng Qi to live, and she agreed.

Thus, Clive Dharma, Clay
Byron, and Caulder Gaunt trained together with Mei-Chan Ko
under Archimedes for nine years. Caulder fell deeply in love with
Mei-Chan but feared upsetting their dynamic at the monastery by
sharing his feelings. Gaunt was a confident man, but he was troubled,
as he still had no memory of his life before 1955. By 1975, Gaunt
and his young fellow pupils had excelled at their training. But Clay
Byron desired a slightly different path. He announced that he was
leaving for training in Libania under the Marchessa. The others chose
to remain in Feng Qi for a bit longer. Clay embarked, and Kar-Fai
wished him well, and dubbed him “Sojourner” for his restless
spirit. Clay promised Clive and Gaunt that he'd meet them again one
day.

The one saddest about Clay
leaving was Kar-Fai's young son, Jun-Kim Liao (or June Kim, born
1967) who saw Clay and Clive as older brothers and Gaunt as an uncle.
Jun-Kim was the offspring of the marriage of Kar-Fai to Colleen Soh
(b. 1940), a half-Irish, half-Korean whose father Kim Park Soh (b.
1918) had lived at Feng Qi in the 1930s and 1940s and became an agent
of Bram Vallard via his connection to Feng Qi, where he had trained
in the 1920s. Kim Park's other daughter, Lerby Soh, married Vallard's
son Randolph Hoxworth (b.1947) and the couple settled in Hallmark and
had three daughters: Betsy, Lerby, and Jill, all of whom would one
day meet their cousin Jun-Kim, whose importance to this narrative
will grow as we move along.

III. Lucifer Revisited

Alec Duarte first
encountered Kicia Marie Blessing in 1971 when he came to Hallmark to
finish off his father Tony Duarte and Tony's partner and lover Marco
Allegretti. He set up his place of operation in a Hotel 6 and that
evening, after staking out Tony's mansion, dropped in at the Lucifer
Club for a few drinks and to see naked girls dance. He was sexually
frustrated due to his time with Mariposa Marisol. Celibacy was
getting old for him. Kicia was a stunning dancer at the club who
caught his eye immediately. He soon learned after a table dance from
Kicia that she was only 15 years old. The pimp Diggs Reale who, at
that time, owned and ran the Lucifer Club had managed to persuade
Kicia to start stripping at 14. He roped her in via her mother
Acacia, who Javier, the founder of the club, enlisted as a dancer
after he met her by chance on a trip to India in 1954. One year
later, Kicia was born, the offspring of Acacia's marriage to Black
Torpedo Ray, whom she had wed one week after meeting him.

Acacia knew her daughter
looked much older than her age, and she knew the next stop on the
illusory highway to fame and riches offered by Diggs was a life of
turning tricks. In 1971, Kicia's father was in prison, framed by
Diggs and Eli Singer; he and Acacia had divorced in 1958. Alec was
the first man Kicia had danced for that didn't immediately attempt to
score with her. She was fascinated by this 23 year old loner with
pale blue eyes and a swanky moustache and soul patch. At the end of
the evening, Alec bid her a fond farewell and she gave him her phone
number. He said he didn't know how much longer he'd be in Hallmark;
only that he would be back and look her up – and hoped she'd be in
school by then.

Three years later, Duarte
returned to Hallmark for phase two of the Marchessa's three mandates.
He decided impulsively to make it a stealth mission, mainly to get a
job in Hallmark and establish a dual ID so that he could move freely
as Cowan, whose cowl he first donned on this trip (the cowl would
have many configurations over the years). But above all, he stayed
around to see Kicia Blessing. The job he chose was as a cab driver;
he was utterly fascinated by taxi driving.

Alec began hanging out at
the club for a few weeks, getting to know Kicia's father; they became
fast friends. Ray approved of Alec, and Alec alone, as a match for
his now 19 year old daughter. Acacia had returned to India for a
time, but Ray wanted her back at the club, their differences aside.
Alec made some young friends who frequented the Lucifer Club, much to
their families' dismay. From Gossingham, he met Shirley Townshend
Drake and her husband Shelby and son Lance. Lance was only six years
old and already craved heavy metal and occult imagery; his favorite
group was the infamous White Rabbit, led by the rowdy Hasty
Greenhalgh, and his favorite shop was Bradcroft LTD. Lance loved
Alec; Alec wasn't sure what to make of this kid but appreciated the
cameraderie. Lance's uncle was preparing to open a comic book store
in Hallmark called Origins, but for now, was holding mini-conventions
at Northland Mall in upper Hallmark. H. Sidney Drake looked down on
his relatives, especially nephew Lance's proclivities as Sidney was a
devout born again Christian.

One of Alec's drinking
buddies was a fellow cabbie at Zenith Cab: Renee Pointier, a French
immigrant who was in her 30s and certainly an alcoholic. She and Alec
had a few drunken nights of wanton sex, but he felt he was getting
far off track from his fixation on Kicia, not to mention his
impossible yearnings for his teacher the Marchessa. Renee dug Alec a
good bit, and confronted him over Kicia. He made his feelings
apparent, and Renee soon left Alec, Zenith, and Hallmark – at least
for a good 10 years. Her replacement became Alec's “sidekick” for
the duration of his time cruising Flicker Street for fares: a 16 year
old cabbie-in-training named Hobie T Reale, Diggs' nephew. Alec
taught Hobie some martial arts and Hobie referred to Alec as
“teacher”. Alec said he was on a mission, Hobie could not come
along, and when next he came to Hallmark, he would give Hobie a
proper training. The two would often smoke ganja and ruminate on the
nature of the universe, which Alec would soon be doing in a whole
different venue.

In the midst of all this,
Alec never wavered in using his tightness with Ray to see Kicia every
chance he got. They had a sweet and tender dynamic that belied the
violence and vice surrounding them. Alec practiced using his hard-won
skills to hit the mob, and was only marginally successful. Finally,
the time came for his mission: to infiltrate Javier's Order of Cosmic
Emptiness. He managed to kill guest speaker Antioch Moldor, a
powerful warlock and founder of the Aggregate analog group the
Damnation Brigade. Javier let Cowan escape and was intrigued by him.

It had been two months of
what was supposed to be a two week mission. Alec went to see Kicia
one night when she was home alone studying (Ray got her back in
school) and Ray was clubbing. They finally had “The Talk”
(capital “T”, capital “T”), which was what Alec called the
awkward crossroads a potential couple invariably arrived at, in order
to decide to be a couple or not. Alec tried to spill his guts, and
was doing okay when Kicia savagely seduced Duarte. She had wanted him
for so long she was boiling over. After an hour of oftimes tender,
oftimes tempestuous coupling, the two lay in bed and finished “The
Talk”.

Kicia didn't think they
would work unless Alec took her with him when he left and unless Alec
got over his infatuation with his teacher. Neither seemed possible,
and for the first time that he could remember, Alec Duarte – Cowan
– cried. He said goodbye to Kicia and expressed that should their
paths cross again, maybe they could be together. Kicia found this
unlikely and said some soul-crushing things to Alec to disabuse him
of this notion and get him to leave before she, too, lost it. And
thus, Alec returned to the Marchessa for three more years, and
consummated their attraction. Kicia dropped out of school and
embraced the Flicker Street bohemian crowd, the hub of Hallmark's
outcasts, freaks, loners, artists, and aesthetes. There she met the
enigmatic Brother Zodiac and the two began a passionate affair filled
with romance and music and – other, darker things to be discussed
shortly.

IV. Sojourner's Solacium

Sojourner made it to the
Marchessa's Solacium in Libania in 1975.He submitted himself for
training, and was accepted. He met Cowan for the first time, having
no idea yet that Alec avenged Clay's family's deaths. Duarte helped Sojourner adjust to the different approach of Marchessa's Solacium.
Clay responded well to his new teacher. Clay was intrigued by the
relationship Libania and FOPA had with Serafinia. While at the
Solacium, he met Redmund Jeffrey, an African-American spy for REACT
posing as a FOPA double agent. Jeffrey was there to aid in
destabilizing relations ever further with Serafinia. Ironically he
married a Serafinia native and had two daughters they raised in
Serafinia: Laura (b. 1956) and Ophelia (b. 1958). Clay met and fell
for Laura Jeffrey. With Redmund's permission they wed.Redmund despised Byron,
however, and plotted to eliminate him without provoking the
Marchessa.

Laura was soon pregnant,
and, in her eighth month, she was killed by an explosion set at the
Solacium by Redmund and meant to be blamed on the Serafinians.
Laura's child, to be named Jeffrey Byron, survived however, and
Redmund gave the baby to Ophelia and demanded she and her husband
Charles Mourning raise the child as their own back home in the U.S. with Redmund's aging mother, the baby's great-grandmother, Cecilia
Jeffrey. The child was born in June 1976 and was named Michelito
Mourning. It would be many years before the truth of his parentage
was outed.

Redmund's own wife Unocita
Quonquonero tried to kill him for using her and playing with their
family's lives. Redmund beat her badly and she confided in Clay that
she contemplated suicide daily. She threatened to tell Clay the truth
about why the Mournings left South America so suddenly after Laura's
death. Redmund killed her, making it look like suicide. Unocita's
brother Rajael cried out for Redmund's blood. Alec Duarte knew it was
time for the monster Redmund Jeffrey to pay the price, and so he
challenged him to a duel of hand to hand combat. Redmund was no
slouch in this area, but hardly up to the training of the Marchessa.
Alec snapped his neck and his threat was over. Once again, Cowan had
avenged Sojourner without really knowing it; Alec was none the wiser
than Clay was about Clay's son.

With Redmund's entire family
gone, Clay Byron focused once more deeply on his training. When Alec
left the Solacium in 1977 to fulfill his final mandate, Marchessa
knew he may never return, and he did not. Clay was left behind to
lose himself in honing his body and mind to their sharpest points in
order to obliterate the pain of his lost wife and son. The Marchessa
promised Alec that when Clay seemed ready, she would send him back to
Hallmark to claim his fortune and, hopefully, his place beside Cowan
in the Aggregate. Cowan did indeed find his place among the Aggregate, as recounted elsewhere, but he was pained to learn that
Kicia was involved with the enigmatic Brother Zodiac.

V. Black Cabal Rising

In early 1977, Jerusha
Dharma fell ill and could not be saved by anyone at Feng Qi. Clive
felt it was time to conclude his training there and go to London to
get his mother's affairs in order. He left behind Mei-Chen to train
for one more year before she headed to Hallmark to petition for
membership in the Aggregate. With the resources available to him via
the Byron estate, Caulder Gaunt accompanied Clive and loaned him a
large sum of money and helped to establish his credentials.

Gaunt called upon a friend
and former co-worker at OrDeR Enterprises, Oswin Juan Clancey for
help in Clive's ventures. Oswin flew to London from Hallmark with his
associate Stephanie Ransom Avril, wife of Egon Avril of the infamous
Avril clan discussed in our tenth installment. Gaunt and Clancey
forged documents such as an archaeologist's degree, a tidy bank
account, and any other identifying documents. These items were
created for Clive under the name Randell Coventry. Clive Dharma
wished the world to continue with their ignorance of his existence.

Oswin Clancey (b. 1953) is
noteworthy as the son of Zachariah Clancey and Dawn Cheshire, both
discussed thoroughly in earlier treatments. He was an executive in
advertising at OrDeR. He and Clive bonded immediately and he used his
resources to help “create” Randell Coventry. He was also looking
to invest in new ventures. Stephanie was as well, and she had a
degree in archaeology and shared Clive's interests. It was implicit
that no one involved in this enterprise reveal the truth. Gault
assured everyone that they would be rewarded richly when Clay finally
took control of his fortune. Another investor, the Frenchman Aloysius
Pascal, came on board in late 1977, and he and Clive became best friends. He, Clancey, Stephanie, and Gaunt
set up shop in London, where Clive stayed for nearly two years,
scraping together enough cash for one last grand expedition. Thus was
Coventry Expeditions born. During his time in London, Clive/ Randell engaged in a short-lived and tempestuous marriage to Pascal's sister Margeurite.

Caulder worried that he had
been corrupted by Clive's obsessions and that their years at Feng Qi
were for naught. He missed the peace he had found there. But he found
himself drawn in by the danger and clandestine nature of his
activities. He wondered what kind of man he really was before his
amnesia. He decided to forge ahead with Clive's plan and head to
Hallmark, where he met with Cary Bradcroft and propose a merger with
Bradcroft Ltd. Cary agreed to consider it, but felt he should meet
with Coventry himself first.

For Gaunt's part, he decided
to stay in Hallmark until the Ghost Cat arrived as planned to
petition for membership in the Aggregate. He felt the time had come
to tell her how much he truly loved her. But Mei-Chan rejected
Caulder's advances, however. She simply did not see him in that way.
Gaunt was frustrated beyond words. He began hanging out in Flicker
Street, drinking heavily and filled with self-pity. He took up
painting, producing abstract portraits inspired by his time at Feng
Qi. The more he painted, the more bizarre the symbolism – images of
vistas unimaginable filled his canvases, as visions of frightening
planes and creatures filled his lucid dreaming. He dreamt almost
nightly of Clive and his sword and amulet. In his dreams the Black
Cabal was reborn as one man, wielding the ancient talisman against a
mad god with a third eye and six arms.

As for Clive Dharma, he left
Stephanie in charge of their London office and planned an expedition
to Exodesia in 1979. He felt they needed a guide, a go-between to
survive in Exodesia. Gaunt recommended Javier, who was grudgingly
welcome in Exodesia. Javier went to London to meet with Clive, Oswin,
and Aloysius, and soon the four of them were in Africa, making the
expedition up the mountain where lied the city of Exodesia. They came
before the priest Assias, whose attention was drawn to Clive's
talisman. Assias attempted to barter with Dharma for the objects.
This was in vain. Clive announced that he wished the defeat of the
Shadow Baron and could assure it happening if Assias trained himself
and Pascal in certain Exodesian and Piscean arts of dark alchemy.
Oswin had no desire to learn and Javier was already well-versed.
Assias agreed, and Dharma and Pascal trained for one year in
Exodesia. During this time, Arch Priest Urias was in America working
for SkullCorp and assembling a new Damnation Brigade to plague the
Aggregate. This was fortunate as he coveted the secrets of the Black
Cabal himself. Assias was not a member of the Obscuros; thus, Clive
and Javier correctly believed that he could be trusted.

Oswin was housed in
Exodesia's Azure City, a place where Exodesians of a more benign bent
than the Obscuros dwelt. Assias was the prime minister of sorts of
Azure City. Javier finally felt at home somewhere in Exodesia. The
year at Azure City went by quickly and surprisingly well for Clive's
party, especially given the dark forces at work all around them.
Oswin attributed much of this to Clive's talisman, which Oswin
believed gave Clive a certain aura that protected the group. Though
this seemed to be mere speculation on the part of a layman, it
actually was a correct assumption.

In the summer of 1980 Clive
“graduated” from his studies in Exodesia. The next stop for the
Dharma party was Hallmark. Pascal was sent to the London office to
meet with Stephanie. He was to work there, while Gault and Oswin took
care of business with Cary Bradcroft. Javier bowed out of the whole
affair, but thanked all for helping him actually have a decent
experience in Exodesia. Clive now assumed the identity of Randell
Coventry and began traveling with Stephanie to archaeological digs to
gain actual experience at the position he had faked his way into.
Before he left Hallmark, however, he met with one final investor –
someone he'd wanted to seek out for some time – Orphee deLander.
What passed between them was to be revealed to the public late that
year and will be discussed in our next installment, in which Clive
steels himself to finally face Cary Bradcroft.

Welcome to Flicker Street!

Henry CovertOctober 31, 2015

Flicker Street, all
characters, images, and story elements are Copyright (c) 2015 George
Henry Smathers Jr.

Friday, October 16, 2015

Now it's time to take a
sideways glance at a wild cluster of subjects interlaced to forge a
complete portrait: a sharp slice of the Hallmark “street scene”
over 30 years of mutations and permutations, at its very nexus point
on Flicker Street itself. This is only one such scene but we explore
it here as a respite from the labors of the Aggregate.

Explored within is the
history of the infamous Lucifer Club, from 1952-1982. Through the lives of its owners
and patrons we can trace the bloody fingerprints left on the world by
the wounds and scars of an American city (albeit a unique one).

II. The Lucifer Club

In 1952, the man called
Javier, son of Biazel Karollus, was embracing his Exodesian side and
was assisting Arch-Priest Urias the Grand Necromancer as Urias made a
bid to become one of the birthing SkullCorp's inner circle. Javier
envisioned an exclusive club where the more decadent and, shall we
say, curious denizens of Flicker Street and beyond could congregate
and indulge themselves without a care. Javier did not really
discriminate with the “exclusive” tag; he was not against lower
classes of folk patronizing the club – as long as they paid. Urias
lent Javier some capital, and a handful of Hallmark's finest chipped
into invest, all with the caveat that it be repaid in one year, and
Javier would become co-owner of the club, with Urias a silent
partner, hence the club was yet another source of revenue for
SkullCorp. Javier's plan was to eventually buy out Urias – if that
was possible.

Javier opened the club on
New Years Eve, 1953. From the first night, two groups that would be
mainstays and lifeblood of the club congealed. The first group to
hold court in the club revolved around Nels Christensen, a cohort of
Javier's that worked for the Machine. He was an investor in the club.
His brother, Lambert Christensen, would often visit. What Nels did
not know was that the Lambert that would drop in on him from time to
time was actually Bram Vallard aka the Apparition (and his split personality Royal Hoxworth aka Saturnine). The real Lambert “loaned” his ID
to Vallard for long stretches while he tooled around Europe. But the
real Lambert died in 1950. Vallard continued the ruse however,
keeping Nel's older brother alive. Vallard was such a master of
disguise and subterfuge that Nels never discovered the truth.

Nels found a motley group to
drink and watch the exotic dancers with. One of his employees, Judd
Fullerton, who he condescended to in the workplace, became a
treasured drinking buddy, as did Judd's best friend, Henry Colter (b.
1923), who played drums in the closest thing the club had to a house
band, the Ulysses Reale 6. Henry was the only white member of the
band, so Nels tended not to invite Henry's bandmates over except for
an occasional toast. Shiloh Mercer, the soprano sax player, often
crashed their gatherings in an extremely inebriated state. Shiloh was another of the African-American branch of the Mercer clan, and was the 6th great-grandson of Ewen Cromwell. The whole
group enjoyed Shiloh's company, except Nels and his friend Jonathan, an
occasional member of this poor man's Rat Pack. Jonathan Sebastian III
was a wealthy German-descended heir who was a major investor in the
Lucifer Club. Jonathan was often referred to as the “sixth wheel”
by the employees. Javier actually was himself a tight member
of Nels' crew, though unlike Nels and sebastian he was fair to everyone.

There was a final key player
in the “Christensen Quintet” as they became dubbed due to an
off-hand remark by Ulysses Reale's bass player, a real cut-up called
Ondine Jackson. Jackson's epithet was hardly appreciated by Nels, but
it stuck. Nels had recently invested a great sum of money in film
production and distribution, and wanted foreign films as well as
cheapo American flicks on his slate. Nels befriended an Italian
producer whose young nephew, Luca Stenoretti (b. 1923), was honing
his craft as a cinematographer. Nels flew to Italy to see Luca's
latest work on a film called The Sirens of Pallas, a period
adventure film with mythological elements (this at that time had not
yet coalesced into the genre we now know as peplum, or “sword and
sandal” flicks). This was the first film Stenoretti directed
himself (and shot as well).

Stenoretti wielded a secret
which kept Javier installed as as the “fifth banana” in the
Christensen Quintet. Luca's mother, Isabella Clerici, was Javier's
daughter; hence Biazel's granddaughter. Luca admired his charismatic
grandfather and knew he was a practitioner of “black magic”
(though Javier always told him it was “grey magick”), and was
amazed that Javier looked younger than he himself. Javier agreed that
he and his grandson would not go public with their relations. But
Luca resolved that his films as a director would always be suffused
with horror or the occult, even in his lower key thrillers and
westerns. Later, Luca's half-brother Blasco Clerici, would work on
Luca's films and also join Biazel's order (which Luca refused to do,
as did Javier).

III. “The Others”

The second group of regulars
that helped define the club, and caused some controversy in the
media, was all African-American and were a tight bunch. Playfully
called “The Others” (referring to being seen as on a lower
tier as Christensen's cohorts and also distinguishing this group from
the Ulysses Reale 6), their main man was definitely Ulysses P. Reale,
trumpeter - a proud, strong black man who refused to be cowed into
submission by the likes of Christensen or Sebastian. His wife was
Emmaretta Swope, who often sang with Reale's group or with a
small orchestra. Reale himself did no drugs, though he drank, but
some of his pals in and out of his group were users and/ or dealers.
His alto sax player, the virtuoso James Colburne, was a heroin addict, as was
Ulysses' childhood friend Paul Cutler, a quiet, kind gentleman with a
roaring habit who also dealt when he could.

Reale and Cutler were joined
by three other perennials: the aforementioned Ondine Jackson;
Octavius Flay, a pimp who'd grown up with the rest but refused to
drop out of the macking business; and young Junius G. Hand, who was
on the waitstaff in the club's kitchen. Sebastian especially hated
that such a menial would come and hang out in the club when his shift
was over. Shiloh Mercer would gravitate to the “Others”' table
regularly, unlike Colburne, who was into his own thing, and that
amounted to: his alto and heroin. And he romanced both harder and
more often than any woman who came his way, though he did end up
getting married in the 1960s.

IV. Erszebet

Junius Hand looked up to
Flay's pimping success and loved Ondine's quick wit. He imagined a
life dazzling folks with his talents in both areas. He even had a
name for a whole new persona to do just that: Black Torpedo Ray,
after an aquatic creature he saw in one of his father's books. Junius
had a serious, very forbidden crush on the club's main dancer and
arguably greatest attraction: Erszebet Singer (born 1930). She was
gorgeous and seemingly unattainable. She was quiet, but when she did
speak, she lit up with a thick South Carolina accent that made her
hard to follow in conversation. She was a burlesque star of some
acclaim, and Javier had cultivated her to the delight of the club's
investors, who he easily paid off within a year of opening. Then only
Urias had any stake in the club besides Javier.

Erszebet was not the only
popular dancer that plied her trade there. Felicia McGee, formerly
the mystery woman known as Crimson Velvet, made many a guest
appearance; her lifestyle, however, was ruining her good looks.
Arronaxe LaRue was a popular performer. “Her claim to fame was her
frame”, the saying went. She was not lithe and athletic like
Erszebet; she had enormous breasts and extremely wide hips, and
tantalized the crowd with both. Geneva was also a shapely and popular
dancer but she was black and was forbidden from performing regularly.
She was also Ulysses' sister and Ondine's wife.

Erszebet was a quarter
Jewish and was quite devoted to her Bible readings. She found no
shame in her work, however, but her brother, Eli, certainly did. Eli
Singer was a bit of a proselytizer, which made him rather unwelcome
at a place like the Lucifer Club (though the archways of the club's
front door portrays a falling angel bearing the epithet: “All are
welcome. Harm none”). Erszebet and Henry Colter were actually
related. Henry was a half-uncle to Eli (b. 1929) and Erszebet. Thus
Henry's and Erszebet's constant flirtation was somewhat incestuous,
and angered Junius. Eli, however, would rather his sister be with
their uncle than a black man any day. The roots of Henry's and the
Singers' families (as well as those of many other noteworthy denizens
of Flicker Street and beyond) lie with the Parminters of Gossingham;
their family history will chronicled further along in our narratives.

V. The 1953 Affair

During the Christmas
holidays in 1953, Javier held a lavish “Yule Bash”. Colburne's
alto solo on “Greensleeves” was a scorching highlight of the
Ulysses Reale 6's set. The music was really jumping; the alcohol was
plentiful, those that needed a fix got one out back, and the girls
were on full display in all their pulchritude. Arronaxe almost stole
the evening when she doffed her top, but Erszebet continued to reign
supreme, dancing with a Santa hat on – and not much else.

As the evening wound to a
spastic close, Erszebet went missing. Eli had come to the club to
disrupt her “unholy frolicking”, but she was nowhere to be
found. Javier asked Eli to leave and Singer swore he'd destroy the “pagan
heathen bastard” Javier before he died. While Javier was avoiding a
serious problem, another arose. Nels, Henry, Judd, and Luca were
extremely intoxicated and wanted a special table dance from Erszebet.
They went looking in Javier's office, and found her making love with
young Junius G. Hand! Javier came upon the scene.

“Did you know about this?”
asked Nels. Javier indicated he did. He plead with the four not to
tell anyone for fear that Eli would launch a literal lynch mob
against Junius. Then Erszebet confessed she was already pregnant with
Junius' child. This wasn't the first time they had carried on. Javier
hatched a scheme: if her pregnancy was found out, the Christensen
Quintet would claim they had a mad consensual orgy with a willing
Miss Singer. Erszebet thanked them, and agreed to go along, but
worried it would ruin the men, especially Javier and Nels. Nels was
furious, but swore to go along with the pact, even though he really
thought Junius should be lynched anyway. Not only was he a Negro,
thought Christensen, but he was damned annoying with his constant
jokiness.

Everyone went about their
business, but in a few weeks Erszebet was starting to show. The rumor
mills began grinding as she stopped performing and wouldn't allow
herself to be photographed. Javier leaked the story to the media
himself, though no one knew this save him. As predicted, all was
traced to the Yule Bash. Javier admitted to the media there'd been an
orgy. The other men all said, “no comment” (as did Luca in Italy;
he was actually quite taken with Miss Singer and wished it had been
him).

The scandal almost did in
Erszebet. “The Baby with Five Fathers” and “Heir to the
Christensen Quintet” were some of the labels attached to the unborn
child. The baby's complexion (even given Javier's odd skin tone)
would give away that it had a black father. Geneva Reale had agreed to
deliver the baby (she had studied nursing before resorting to
dancing) in secret, and it would be sold to a black family. Geneva
knew a couple: the Jamaican Heracles Torrance and his mixed-race wife
Tamara Welsh. They could not have children, and little Dane Hand, as
Erszebet called him, became their son, Dane Torrance (who we know as
an adult aka The Troubleshooter from recent accounts).

The official story was that
the child was stillborn. None of the five men save Javier knew what
had become of the child. Part of the pact the five men swore was that
they would no longer congregate at the Lucifer Club. They did agree
to attend a 15 year reunion there if the club still stood in 1968.
Javier soldered on through the scandal and finally bought out Urias
in 1960. Junius never did learn the truth about what happened; he
assumed his child was in fact stillborn. He did become a pimp,
following in Octavius Flay's footsteps. He was ambitious though; now
known as Black Torpedo Ray, he hoped one day to own the Lucifer Club
himself.

VI. The 1968 Affair

The reunion did indeed come
to pass. The Yule Bash of 1968 was something to see at the Lucifer
Club, still owned by Javier but managed by Black Torpedo Ray. Times
had changed. The drugs were more mind-altering, the music more wild
and free, the women baring more than ever before (in other words
everything). Flicker Street pulsated with the orgiastic energy that
flowed in and out of Javier's “pleasure palace”. The Ulysses Real
6 reunited for an amazing set. Colburne and Mercer were solo artists
by this time, and each led their bands to the utmost heights of free
jazz. Ulysses was still something of a hard bopper, and some of his
newer arrangements, mixing R&B and rock influences with his
wife's bewitching voice, blew away the teeming throng at the club.
Ondine Jackson was back on bass and cracking wise. His wife Geneva,
who danced and sang back up to Emmaretta, had blessed him with a son
Ondine Jr. in 1945 andOndine Jr.'s wife, Violetta Amadeus, had given
birth to their son Amadeus “Amajack” Jackson mere weeks before the bash.

Henry Colter was more
straight ahead bop than funk, but he could still mix it up on the
drums a bit. Of his family, his wife, Mary Rudisill (b. 1920; a
relative of the Palmers of Hallmark) and two sons (Radley Colter, b.
1940 and Milburne b. 1950) attended the party, though it was a bit
much for Mary. Young Milburne had a great time. Of the “Others”,
Octavius Flay made the party, flanked by a stable of his finest
ladies of the evening. Black Torpedo Ray said, “Damn Flay! I may be
a mack daddy, but you still the mackest of the macks!!” Most of
Flay's offspring made it to the bash: his sons Cornelius, Moxon, and
Jaffa; and his daughter Octavia, who was there with her boyfriend
Euphrates Straw of the Aggregate (who was also there to keep an eye
on Javier). Octavius' daughter Bethel was a devout Christian and she
was in church that night. She would eventually marry her pastor,
Judah Greene, and have a lovely daughter Scheherazade. All five
children of Octavius were from his marriage to Ulysses' sister
Rochelle Reale, making the Flays and Reales cousins.

Ondine and Ulysses have been
discussed, but one beloved member of their crew from elder days was
missing: Paul Cutler, the quiet, kind addict had finally succumbed,
leaving behind three beautiful daughters, all of whom attended the
bash: Naomi, who brought her 10 year old son Hobard Torino “Hobie
T” Reale, to the party but not her estranged husband Godfrey Reale
(Ulysses' son); Zandalee, who was at the time dating Hiawatha Hand
but had her eye on his half-brother Black Torpedo Ray; and Pauline Cutler
aka Cotton Suede, much discussed in these pages.

Black Torpedo Ray hosted the
Lucifer Club Burlesque Film Festival. It began with vintage clips of
Erszebet and many of her peers; and continued with three shorts
specially made for this festival. These were the work of directors
Matthias Creed, Cornelius Flay, and Luca Stenorettli, all honored
guests at this Yule Bash. Luca and Henry were not the only members of
the infamous Christensen Quintet to adorn the party. Javier was
present, naturally, as were Judd and even Nels, who'd been living in
Europe ever since the scandal broke.

Ray also hosted another
special triple event, this one an unadvertised surprise: performances
by the “big three” dancers of the fifties, opening with a still
comely Geneva, and continuing with the jaw-droppingly buxom Arronaxe,
and, finally, at age 38, still stunning and radiating her signature
charisma, Erszebet Singer. The assembled throng was bowled over, and
Ulysses and the other musicians played some swanky, evocative
stripper-appropriate tuneage. Shiloh Mercer in particular soloed
madly with no abandon while Miss Singer shook herself gradually into
a frenzy.

Two hours later, the
Christensen Quintet were plastered and Erszebet was still sailing on
her first trip with LSD, as supplied her by Arronaxe. The six
adjourned to Javier's office, where Erszebet immediately grabbed
Henry in a passionate kiss. They made out while Javier went to confer
with Ray and let him know not to disturb them. When he returned, Judd
was crying in the corner, Henry was asleep with his pants off,
Erszebet was naked and being fondled by Luca, Nels was cursing in the
other corner, and Javier found himself curiously and intensely
aroused by the whole thing. “Life imitates art!” he screamed as
Luca made love with Erszebet on his fold out couch.

After Luca rolled off
Erszebet, she called out to Javier, “I want you! I want you want
you want you!” Javier was not the kind of man to indulge in what we
now call date rape. He was not the kind of man to make love to a
woman with anyone else around either. And he thought it so twisted
that the story they concocted 15 years ago to save Ray's life had
stirred to life, a gargantuan beast of brobdinagian lust.

So he made love with
Erszebet. Afterwards he noticed Henry and Luca had dressed and were
just outside the doorway. Nels and Judd were nowhere to be found.
Erszebet dressed but was still tripping. Javier called for Ray and
asked him to get her home; Javier would lock up and get the others
out. Ray went out the back with Erszebet. Javier heard Nels call him,
“Let me the hell out of here!” Javier ran downstairs, Henry and
Luca behind.

Nels told Javier this was
it; he was done with the group, the club, and “that slut”. Henry
almost struck Nels for his remark. Judd asked if they could just
leave. Javier agreed only if they made a new pact, that no one would
speak of what happened. “Of course you idiot”, said Nels. “Now
for chrissakes, let us out of this infernal place”. Luca lunged
forward to deck Nels, but Judd held him back. Then, when Luca was
calmer, Judd said, “Okay. Good night. I'm riding with Nels.” Judd
was sobbing.

Nels and Judd took off.
Outside, Ulysses' son Diggs Reale was pacing in the alleyway. He had
been in and out of the club all night, seething mad. He was also a
disciple of Octavius Flay and a rather nasty pimp and procurer in his
own right but was jealous of Ray's success. He was waiting, waiting
for a chance to plant certain items in Ray's car and to pay off his
partner in sabotage – Eli Singer. Singer called the police after
the club had closed down at 3 am. Only the Christensen Quintet,
Erszebet, and Ray were inside then. By the time Nels and Judd roared
away, only three of the 'Quintet' remained and they spoke for a
moment about what happened, then resolved to lock up, leave, and
never see each other again.

And so they each departed,
just as police cars came into view. Ray was in his car out back
talking to a sobbing and shaken Erszebet. Diggs had hastily split.
But Eli Singer was heading back to the club to confront the Quintet.
He found the front door locked and began screaming madly. The police
drove up and immediately accosted him; then they spread out and
covered the alleys and the back, where they found Ray and Erszebet.
The cops confronted Ray and asked to check his car. They found a ton
of cocaine and some semi-automatic weapons concealed in the trunk.

The police dragged Singer to
the back of the club. They thought he was drunk (he was) and they
were going to have some fun and rough him up. When Eli looked up, he
saw Erszebet being pulled out of the car and Ray resisting arrest.
“That ain't my shit you rat-soup-eatin' motherfuckers!” was one
memorable curse Ray hurled at the men in blue. He used kung fu (his own
peculiar technique) on the cops but their sheer number hemmed him
in. Eli grabbed one of the cop's guns and shot his Erszebet, then shot
at the cops. They blasted him away, and he lie cold and dead in the
snow as the police pushed Black Torpedo Ray into a car and took
Erszebet, shot in the arm, to an ER.

The police report was
chilling: a pimp resisting arrest, a hooker shot by a wino who had to
be killed in self-defense... everything was distorted, but to the
racist, sexist police commissioner it was just another day. The mayor
called for the club to be closed. Javier realized he needed to lower
his profile or face the wrath of someone like his father or Urias. So
the club closed while Black Torpedo Ray languished in prison for
nearly five long years.

VII. The Prince of Flicker
Street

Erszebet recovered quickly
from being shot, and grieved her mad brother. She soon found out that
she was pregnant again. She resolved to once again give her child up
for adoption. It was a daughter, born in September 1969. She named
her Celeste but her new parents changed her name. It would be years
before this girl would find out her true parentage. Even Erszebet
wasn't sure if it was Henry's, Luca's, or Javier's. She was actually
going to tell Ray that their son Dane was alive when the cops came
upon them. She swore she'd tell him one day.

Javier sold the club to
Diggs Reale but soon divined that Diggs and Eli Singer were
responsible for what happened that night right after Javier left. He
admonished Diggs not to reopen too soon; the authorities would be all
over the club all of the time. Diggs shrugged off Javier's advice and
proceeded to reopen, making sure to keep all the right wheels
greased, so to speak. Diggs was highly prosperous, keeping the “all
are welcome” sign and attitude, though in fact, whites were rarely
welcome, unless they were dealers or cops on the take.

In late 1973, Junius Gauge
Hand was being offered a deal by his prison warden and the FBIto get him out of prison to
help them take down Diggs. In no time, Black Torpedo Ray was back on
Flicker Street. He had scores to settle and was not to be trifled
with. The first thing he did was have dinner with his daughter Kicia
Blessing (b. 1955). Kicia's mother was the exotic Indian belly dancer
Acacia Krishnamurti aka Acacia Blessing, who Ray wed briefly from
1954-1958. Acacia was a discovery of Javier's and was popular at the
club. Kicia was hanging out in Flicker Street with the bohemian
crowd. Ray was proud of her for not being a whore or a druggie. Ray
next went to the Lucifer Club, where he confronted Diggs and warned
him to sign the club over to him or die. Diggs laughed and accused
Ray of tripping on some manner of drug. Ray beat him senseless and
forced Diggs to sign the club over to him.

It had come to Javier's
attention that Ray was free from prison. Javier went to Hallmark and
sought out Ray, who was staying with Ulysses Reale. Javier was glad
to see his friends again and together they mapped out a strategy to
get the club back on its feet, so to speak, as Diggs had driven it
into the proverbial ground and made of it his own personal pleasure
palace of pimping and hard drugs. Their efforts were successful,
though it took a few years. Ray integrated the club more, and forced
the macks and dealers who hung out there to do their business on the
streets, not inside the club.

The disco craze of the late 70s inevitably hit the Lucifer Club like a tsunami, and with it
came a shock wave of cocaine fever. Ray started to burn out as the
decade waned, and personal troubles involving his children took a
toll, so finally, in 1982, he sold the club and retired early, living
like a prince, and treating all of Flicker Street as his kingdom.

VIII. Thaumaturgy Revisited...

The man who purchased The
Lucifer Club was known as Prester John Grey, and he was well-known
all through Flicker Streeet and the larger Hallmark music scene. Prester John was born Vance Orlison Parminter in 1949 in Exodesia, the offspring
of Grey Parminter and Basil Dylan Orlison (son of “Doc Vance” and
Eve Dylan, daughter of Dr. Basil Dylan, the first major physician in
Hallmark), both born 1920. Basil D. Orlison had a sister, Faustine,
b. 1922, an occultist who owned the first occult shoppe in the city,
even before Malcolm Bradcroft's shoppe, called simply Faustine's.
Faustine married the aspiring bookstore magnate TR Bessemer Jr., an
African-American entrepreneur. Their children were Eve Bessemer, b.
1953, and Taurean Bessemer III, born 1955, who as an adult merged his
business with the smaller Noel chain, though Bessemer-Noel in its
entirety was later sold to OrDeR Enterprises.

Faustine and Malcolm
Bradcroft merged their interests into one shoppe, and in tandem,
willed it to Cary and Ashton (though Ashton was technically not alive
to see it). Faustine passed away in 1955 in childbirth. Hence
Bradcroft LTD was born. In the years between Cary taking the shoppe
and his affair with Katherine Van Juss (1956-1959), he began to fancy
Grey Parminter, a formidable witch, whose lover Basil, was slain by
the Exodesians in 1953.

Grey Parminter's story goes
something like this: Her grandmother was Exodesian High Priestess
Phallasma III, who begat a daughter, Selma Cairne, a powerful witch.
Selma and her husband John Petty Parminter, the great-grandson of
Exodesian Lodin, wished to spearhead a 1939 expedition into Exodesia
– well before the Bradcrofts. But they weren't nearly as mentally
or spiritually prepared as the Bradcrofts. Their expedition included:
Grey, a teen of immense magickal promise; her lover, Basil; Selma and
John Petty Parminter; Selma's sisters Ainwe and Anowre and their
husbands, the occult book collectors Rainer and Werner Faust, who
were brothers. The party was captured and tortured by the Obscuros.
Grey offered her life and that of her lover and son if the others
could go. Priest Assias was not thrilled, but he capitulated. Selma
blessed her child and departed; she also bonded with her mother
Phallasma, who favored her granddaughter Grey.

The small family unit stayed
but Basil was put to death for heresy in 1953 for studying the Presence
Vaikuntha. Grey was afraid for her young son, and they fled
Exodesia. Grey had been converted to Hinduism just before Basil's
death. The mother and boy had also been delving into the legend of
Vaikuntha, as well as his defeat 1000 years earlier by the original Black Cabal (a group that
forged a seemingly indestructible sword and amulet). Grey forsook the Exodesians and sought out Vaikuntha. She
invoked his worship to gain revenge, realizing Urias would have her
dead. Grey took Vance to Gossingham MA, near Hallmark. Faustine, ill
at this time, was divesting her share of the curio shoppe to Cary, as
noted previously.

Cary Bradcroft welcomed Grey
Parminter Orlison with open arms – very open, as they began an
affair. However, they always distrusted each other. Young Vance had never felt anything
for the emotionally distant Basil, but was drawn to benevolent Cary
Bradcroft. Where they parted company was over the mad god Vaikuntha,
which Grey was beginning a coven for – a coven infused with a Hindu/ neo-pagan/ scorched
earth vibe. Cary's concern was enormous, especially as she had
befriended Katherine Van Juss, sorceress and a lover of Cary's on
occasion. Cary's daughter Sarah was Katherine Van Juss'' though she
was married to the mage Janos Disraeli, which whom Katherine had a
son, Griffin (later known as Rory Sabbath).

Janos confronted Grey over
Vaikuntha. They fought; Grey was killed. Janos was afraid his
delicate balance of power with the Shadow Baron would be ruined. He
made it appear that Biazel had done the deed. The bottom line was
that Janos slew Grey, for her evil intentions regarding Vaikuntha's
imminent manifestation were bearing deadly fruit. As for Vance
Parminter, he always believed his mother was slain by her lover Cary
Bradcroft. Grey had convinced her son to become a lifelong acolyte of
Vaikuntha. Young Vance Parminter ran away when his mother was killed,
and the Bradcrofts were never able to locate him, or so Cary wished
everyone to think. So he allowed Vance to became the homeless street
urchin who began hanging out in Flicker Street in 1966. Cary kept tabs on
Vance until Vance developed a 3rd eye, which grew in
1972 and blocked all psi “transmissions” Cary'd been tapping
into astrally via Vance's mind.

IX. The Third Eye... Opened

Vance Parminter first
emerged in the Flicker St scene in 1966 at age 17. His 3rd
eye hadn't opened yet. In 1968, he met Althea Westin (whom he
immediately fell for) and her fiance, Rankin Hogarth, who she was
pregnant by. She had the child in 1968 and named him Franklin Westin
Hogarth II after Rankin's congressman dad, who attempted to destroy
his son and Althea's lives. The couple fought violently over his dad
and their son, leading to Rankin fleeing with his son and forming a
commune with James Diablos and others in 1969. After the couple's
divorce Althea took in the couple's son, whom his dad had renamed
Wesley Francis Garth, whose nickname was “Scrapper”. With Vance's
role unknown to Rankin, Hogarth was soon reinvented as Desi
Decadence, a 'shock rock' superstar. Rankin was pushed to the extreme in a chaotic spell that ruptured his persona. This was Vance's first real working, so perhaps his
sloppiness can be forgiven. But he did it for love and, after all,
made Rankin a rock star (which Vance differentiated
from being a musician).

Rankin/ Desi and Vance lost
touch, to Vance's relief. Vance pursued Althea and at last
consummated their attraction (Vance was 23, Althea 19). They wed soon
after, and had a child, Anjou Faustine Parminter (b. 1972). Vance
busked, playing acoustic blues, and wrote and sang poems of a
Lovecraftian bent. Althea waited tables and Wes, Anjou, and their
parents eked out a meager existence. Musically, Vance was offered to
jam in 1969 with Opal Masque, the German progrock band led by Glu Volker and
Hercule Fogg. Volker had heard a crude demo recorded a
year earlier and dug Vance's concepts. They recorded their premiere
album, La-Bas (Down There) in early 1970; Parminter was 21. He then
adopted his famous cowl and white mask, covering his 3rd
eye, which emerged when he turned 23. Anaximander-Zayan played bass
on this first album.

Vance was especially curious
about his Exodesian heritage. After an ill-fated pilgrimage to
Exodesia and rejection by the Obscuros, he assumed the Parminter
forenames, but rejected the family name, becoming “John Grey”. As
he studied the occult he added an exalted title in some would say a
blasphemous context and became Prester John Grey (Presbyter Johannes being a
legendary figure of early Christendom). He draped himself in occult
imagery but seemingly venerated the cross and crucifixes. As noted, he was
famed for wearing a large black cowl and a chalk white faux porcelain
mask evocative of the Phantom of the Opera (concealing his 3rd
eye), framed by extremely long dreadlocked hair. He was known for
playing the guitar with small daggers and cross-shaped plectrums.

In 1971, Volker, Fogg, and
Prester John recorded Weltanschauung and toured tirelessly with a lineup consisting of PJG,
Anaximander, Glu, Fogg, and synth/ vox/ sax man Jorg Jungen Reinl. In
1972, they added female vox/ keys with Anke Mueller and switched bass
to Brit Hasty Greenhalgh. Also in 1972, Prester John's daughter Anjou Faustine Parminter was
born. The constant touring and occult obsessions were rending PJG's
marriage. In 1974, Anke died (allegedly an occult sacrifice) and
Reinl decamped, leaving 1975's final Opal Masque album, called Torn
from Me Mother Whore, for years to feature PJG, Hasty, Glu, and Fogg.

In 1973, PJG and Althea
separated, and in 1975, divorced. Grey even wrote the lyrics and
music to the chilling lament of their marriage, the title track on Torn from Me Mother
Whore. In 1975, PJG finally recorded his scary acoustic album In
Nomine Anti-Christ. Althea raised her two children alone back in the
Mt. Mosaic area.

From 1976 -1979 PJG was a
key member of bassist Grady Voorman's psyche-funk project Cold Meat,
also featuring Gilligan Dubecker on drums, Reinl on alto and tenor
sax, and Gibson Dubecker on piano and synth. Sadly, Cold Meat
coincided with the termination of the marriage between Althea and
John. PJG was to spend the next decade plus working alongside Desi Decadence once more.

X. Lucifer Rises Again
(1979-1982)

There was an extra-musical,
clandestine reason PJG sought out the ex-Rankin Hogarth. Desi was
essentially PJG's creation. Part of his persona, from his
debut as Prester John Grey onwards, was as a follower of Bradcroftian occultism. He
became an authority on the various orders and factions abroad in the
world of ritual magick. He realized that the Bradcrofts were against
Vaikuntha (who his mother was an adherent to). Grey had sworn a vow to his
mother to become a vessel for Vaikuntha, and none would deter him.
When Vaikuntha returned to this plane, PJG became a secret
worshipper, and actively sought out Vaikuntha's avatars, beginning in
1979.

In 1982, the idea of the
Lucifer Club strongly appealed to Prester John Grey, so he re-opened
it as a rock club, heavy on the metal, brutal with the punk, all
subtlety be damned. He cultivated a strong image in the scene and was
revered by clubgoers and record mavens alike for his work with Desi,
Cold Meat, Opal Masque, and solo. No one could predict in 1982 that
Grey's finest years as a musician – and most devious years as an
occultist – were yet to come.

Originally this article was
to contain a more comprehensive genealogical look at the Parminter
clan of Gossingham, but that fell just beyond the purview of this
piece. Look for more info on this remarkable family in future
accounts.

Welcome to Flicker Street!

Henry CovertOctober 16, 2015

Flicker Street, all
characters, images, and story elements are Copyright (c) 2015 George
Henry Smathers Jr.

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With Honor

This eclectic collection of manga-style comix includes my story "Snow Leopard", featuring pencil art by Albert Luciano; inks by Alex Rivera; letters and tones by editor Shawnti Therrien; and was written, created, and designed by yours truly. Copies are now extremely scarce.

Creating Comics

In this trade paperback, I have a 4 page entry devoted to my storytelling process for SNOW LEOPARD. Published September 2010.

Genesis RIP 1992-2007 - friend, companion, familiar, soulmate

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My editor, collaborator and friend Shawnti Therrien

Shawnti edited 'With Honor' and aided and abetted "Snow Leopard". She also has her own killer site Immortal Gothic (click pic to travel there). Shawnti created and designed the distinctive graphics for She Never Slept, my ex-wife's former website, which hosted much work by myself and friends Sean Lee Levin and Heather Royston.

Henry Covert and Philip Jose Farmer, FarmerCon 2, August 2007

Four years ago, I finally met my all-time favorite writer. This was fortunate, as Mr.Farmer passed away in February 2009. The Maker of Universes has left ours behind for a far more radiant one. I love you, Phil.

RIP Ronnie James Dio July 10, 1942 - May 16, 2010

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All contents of this blog, except where otherwise noted, are written and created by Henry Covert, and are copyright 2008-2017 by George Henry Smathers Jr. 'Strange Others', 'Strange Others by Henry Covert', and 'Henry Covert.com' were created 2007 by Henry Covert and are copyright 2007-2017 by George Henry Smathers Jr. All images copyright 2017 their respective copyright holders, save as noted otherwise.